MX2

Team HRC factory rider Tim Gajser and Monster Energy Yamaha Factory Racing rider Jago Geerts are without question two competitors racing the crest of a wave that could easily see them extend their MXGP and MX2 championship points lead in Sardinia this coming weekend.

Both sensational in the deep sand, after they took victory at the hard pack of Maggiora last weekend, their confidence is at an all-time high. For HRC factory rider Gajser, the taste of victory champagne will never become boring.

“Winning never gets boring,” Gajser said. “I am super happy you know and so proud of the team and myself, we really work hard for this in the off-season and made some changes with the bike and myself. I couldn’t be happier with the first seven GPs, and I hope we can continue this run. We want to continue this run. You know I don’t really concentrate on how many wins I have, maybe I should and will when it becomes more. Now the numbers are getting bigger I should maybe take more notice and to be up there with such a big names, which is special. I am very proud.”

The 25-year-old Gajser has himself mentioned that he is riding better than ever in his illustrious career and has learnt more than any time in his racing life how to change a track to his liking, even when it seems there is just one racing line.

“This year, I don’t know, it is just such a great year. I can create my own lines and when the rut isn’t deep enough, I can go somewhere else, off the main line and create those lines, lines nobody else is using. The lines I can create are completely off the other lines. When the track gets so rough in the second part of the second moto, when it is brutal, then it is nice if you can find new lines.”

As for Geerts, he took yet another GP win last weekend, making it 13 in his career and is also slowly climbing up the all-time list and is currently the 14^th best Belgian rider of all time when it comes to Grand Prix victories. With a long list of Belgian legends still ahead of him, you just know that with every GP victory his country will follow that progress. For now though, Geerts is just concentrating in holding his nerve and being consistent.

“I feel really good and strong,” Geerts said. “I feel better than ever. I want to keep going like this and try and be as consistent as possible and not make any mistakes. We will see how it goes in the coming races. I just ride with more confidence now and make less mistakes, so that helps. I also make better starts and also, I do better in timed practice, because that is important and now, I make the times practice better and it makes the weekend a lot easier.”

And now, as a Belgian rider everyone will be watching Geerts in the deep white and of Riola, where he could very easily score yet another GP win and take control of that MX2 championship points lead.

“I headed to Sardinia for 10 days to prepare for this next race, rather than head home in between. I travel more alone, and I have more experience how to set-up the bike and that is a point we can’t make small mistakes. It is a long season, but we can’t make mistakes on Sunday now. We have really had a lot of different types of surfaces this year and I really like that, changing from sand to hard pack to clay. Before we had maybe 10 hard pack and one sand track, but now there are many different types of tracks and I really enjoy that change.”

So, while both fields in the MXGP and MX2 classes will be trying to stop Gajser and Geerts, the two red plate owners will be doing everything to not only win in Sardinia this weekend, but also put even more points between them and their rivals.

Midweek cycling incident side-lines de wolf with hand injury.

Kay de Wolf of the Nestaan Husqvarna Factory Racing team will miss the Grand Prix of Sardegna, the eighth round of the 2022 FIM Motocross World Championship, after being struck by a motorist whilst cycling after a very productive day of riding on Wednesday, May 11.

The motorist took full blame for the incident that left de Wolf with a clean fracture of one of the metacarpal bones in his hand. De Wolf has been put in a cast for a short period and will strive to return to racing aboard his FC 250 as quickly as possible.

Rasmus Jorgensen (Nestaan Husqvarna Factory Racing Team Manager): "What can I say? The season so far is difficult to describe without using any cuss words. First and foremost, it is important to mention that in a situation where Kay was so extremely unlucky to be involved in this, he was also very lucky that he did not hurt himself more. It is difficult to accept a situation like this, as the driver of the car took full blame. Kay was just doing his recovery cycle after a good final day of preparation on the bike for the sand of Riola Sardo this weekend. It is what it is, and we will not give up!"

RIOLA SARDO (Sardegna) 12 May 2022 – The FIM Motocross World Championship continues this weekend with a back-to-back Grand Prix which will head to the ‘Island of Sport’ as Riola Sardo will host the second edition of the MXGP of Sardegna.

Riola Sardo is a well-known circuit among the riders in the paddock, as it is a regular stop of the famous Internazionali d’Italia and now part of the MXGP calendar for the second year in a row.

The circuit itself is a typical sand track, though very particular, as despite any rain or water the ground dries very quickly. In comparison to other sand tracks on the calendar, such as Lommel, Riola Sardo is not as deep but still presents a big challenge to the riders.

Last year there was plenty to celebrate at the MXGP of Sardegna as it made its debut to the FIM Motocross World Championship. Not only did it host one of the most intense racing weekends on the calendar that saw the MXGP title chase take a huge turn, but it also hosted the finals of the EMX65 and EMX85 Championships.

This weekend, alongside the regular World Championship racing we will see rounds of the EMX250 as well as the Women’s Motocross World Championship.

In MXGP, all eyes will be on the championship leader Tim Gajser of Team HRC who will enter the MXGP of Sardegna as the man to beat. Last year, Gajser arrived in Riola Sardo with a fresh shoulder injury and that weekend he also lost to championship lead to Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Jeffrey Herlings. But this time around things will be different, as currently Gajser is 81 points ahead and has an incredible track record so far, with six out of seven GP victories this season so far and having gone 1-1 at the last three Grand Prix’s consecutively.

By missing the MXGP of Italy due to injury, Red Bull GasGas Factory Racing’s Jorge Prado, lost more vital championship points as he currently sits fourth behind Monster Energy Yamaha Factory Racing’s Maxime Renaux and Jeremy Seewer who were third and second on the box last weekend. 

Both riders looked strong in Maggiora, but it will be interesting if they can take their success from the hardpack track to the sandy Riola Sardo and repeat their success once again. Last season in MX2, Renaux had some nice battles with Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Tom Vialle and ended up on the box, so there is no reason he cannot do that again this time around in MXGP.

Gebben Van Venrooy Yamaha Racing’s Calvin Vlaanderen was impressive during the MXGP of Maggiora as he got his first top four overall result of the season. In the opening heat of the MXGP class, Vlaanderen took his first Fox Holeshot of 2022 and led six laps of the race. The Dutchman eventually drifted back to fourth for his best result of the year so far. And following such a positive weekend, it would be nice to see Vlaanderen build upon that in Riola Sardo, where he actually finished fourth overall too last season with a consistent 4-4 result.

Another rider to watch this weekend is Kawasaki Racing Team MXGP’s Ben Watson who also had his best weekend of the season in Maggiora. The Brit was the second recipient of the Fox Holeshot in the second MXGP race and briefly led too. In the end the Brit was able to bring it home in fourth for sixth overall, which will no doubt be a huge confidence boost. Watson has struggled in the beginning of the season, but hopefully the result last weekend in Italy will be just a stepping-stone for the factory Kawasaki rider onto better things for the rest of the championship.

Home rider, Alberto Forato of SM Action Racing Team YUASA Battery was the top scoring Italian at the MXGP of Italy in Maggiora last weekend, finishing 15^th overall which was probably not his best result this season. But Forato has been consistent this year and often battling at the sharp end, week in week out, therefore a solid result can be expected from him.

In Maggiora we also saw the comeback of Beta SDM Corse Racing Team’s Alessandro Lupino who had several surgeries to clear the infection from appendicitis. In race one Lupino managed 14^th which was his best result but still a very good effort as he rides himself back to strength. This weekend will be tough for the Italian but no doubt a challenge that he will take on with both hands.

Though possibly the biggest news of the weekend is that Red Bull GasGas Factory Racing’s Mattia Guadagnini will step-up to the MXGP class from this weekend as he tests his abilities on the biggest 450cc bike to see if he will be better suited to the more powerful engine. While Riola Sardo is not the easiest track to make an MXGP debut, there is no doubt that Guadagnini will be more motivated than ever to use this weekend as a great learning race.

MXGP of Sardegna – MXGP Top 3:

1. Jeffrey Herlings

2. Jorge Prado

3. Romain Febvre

Main Photo: MXGP Start 2021

Bottom Photos: 1. Tim Gajser 2. Jeremy Seewer

MXGP - World Championship Top 10 Classification: 1. Tim Gajser (SLO, HON), 336 points; 2. Maxime Renaux (FRA, YAM), 255 p.; 3. Jeremy Seewer (SUI, YAM), 231 p.; 4. Jorge Prado (ESP, GAS), 220 p.; 5. Glenn Coldenhoff (NED, YAM), 199 p.; 6. Ruben Fernandez (ESP, HON), 194 p.; 7. Brian Bogers (NED, HUS), 173 p.; 8. Jeremy Van Horebeek (BEL, BET), 166 p.; 9. Pauls Jonass (LAT, HUS), 149 p.; 10. Alberto Forato (ITA, GAS), 132 p.;

In MX2, Monster Energy Yamaha Factory Racing’s Jago Geerts enters the eighth round of the series with a slim lead over Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Tom Vialle as just six points separate the pair.

Geerts is among the favourites for the top step this weekend as he enters the race with two back-to-back GP victories from Latvia and Italy and is also back on a sand-based circuit, which we all know is one of his strong points.

But Vialle is also a serious contender having gone 1-1 last year in Riola Sardo after some nice battles with Renaux and Geerts too. While the last two weekends have not been the best for Vialle, this doesn’t mean he is not capable of bouncing back with a victory in Sardinia.

Unfortuntely Nestaan Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Kay de Wolf who is typically another strong sand rider, is forced to miss the MXGP of Sardegna due to a hand injury. 

During the last race in Italy, a few rides stood out which should be interesting to keep an eye on for this weekend, one of those riders being Stephen Rubini from Ship to Cycle Honda SR Motoblouz. The Frenchman looked impressive in the opening race as he challenged Geerts for the race win and ended his weekend with his first ever MX2 podium, which means he will enter this race full of confidence. Of course the biggest thing will be whether he can deliver the same performance on the sand as he did on the hard pack.

It will also be interesting to see what Hitachi KTM Fuelled by Milwaukee’s Isak Gifting and Kay Karssemakers can show this weekend after some strong results in Maggiora. Gifting finished race one in third last weekend which was one of his best rides this season, but if we also look back on his results last year, where he finished fifth overall, we could see another nice ride from the Swedish rider this weekend.

There’s also Diga Procross KTM Racing Team’s Liam Everts who turned heads at the Italian Grand Prix, finishing in fourth, after battling at the sharp end for the entire race, but then unfortunately failed to match the result in race two. This weekend it would be nice to see Everts deliver two solid results for a strong overall scorecard, especially coming back to a track that he lined-up for one of his first races in MX2 just last season.

Red Bull GasGas Factory Racing’s Simon Längenfelder had a positive weekend in Maggiora with a fourth overall. In the last few has struggled, but last week it looked like Längenfelder made a step in the right direction.

This weekend, F&H Kawasaki Racing’s Kevin Horgmo could be another rider challenging at the sharp end as he proved in Latvia that his sand riding is rather strong, which is no doubt thanks to the hard work put in by the Norwegian and the team coach Marc De Reuver. In Kegums Horgmo scored his first ever MX2 podium and led some laps too.

MXGP of Sardegna – MX2 Top 3:

1. Tom Vialle

2. Maxime Renaux

3. Kay de Wolf

Main Photo: MX2 Start 2021

Bottom Photos: 1. Jago Geerts 2. Kay de Wolf 

MX2 - World Championship Top 10 Classification: 1. Jago Geerts (BEL, YAM), 291 points; 2. Tom Vialle (FRA, KTM), 285 p.; 3. Simon Längenfelder (GER, GAS), 216 p.; 4. Kay de Wolf (NED, HUS), 211 p.; 5. Mikkel Haarup (DEN, KAW), 211 p.; 6. Kevin Horgmo (NOR, KAW), 199 p.; 7. Mattia Guadagnini (ITA, GAS), 172 p.; 8. Andrea Adamo (ITA, GAS), 169 p.; 9. Isak Gifting (SWE, KTM), 165 p.; 10. Stephen Rubini (FRA, HON), 158 p.;

TIMETABLE (Local Timing CEST)

SATURDAY: 09:45 WMX Free Practice, 10:15 EMX250 Free Practice, 10:50 MX2 Free Practice, 11:20 MXGP Free Practice, 12:10 WMX Qualifying Practice, 12:45 EMX250 Qualifying Practice, 13:25 MX2 Time Practice, 14:00 MXGP Time Practice, 14:45 WMX Race 1, 15:30 EMX250 Race 1, 16:25 MX2 Qualifying Race, 17:10 MXGP Qualifying Race.

SUNDAY: 09:45 WMX Race 2, 10:20 MX2 Warm-up, 10:45 MXGP Warm-up, 11:30 EMX250 Race 2, 13:15 MX2 Race 1, 14:15 MXGP Race 1, 16:10 MX2 Race 2, 17:10 MXGP Race 2.

All the photos from the MXGP of Sardegna will be available HERE.

You can find the complete results HERE.

LINKS

Infront Moto Racing

FIM

FIM Europe

Riola Sardo

Ready to get on the gas and face a new challenge, Red Bull GASGAS Factory Racing's Mattia Guadagnini will jump onto the MC 450F for the remainder of the 2022 FIM Motocross World Championship.

• Guadagnini enters the MXGP class for the first time.
• Riola Sardo will mark his debut aboard his MC 450F.
• The entire Red Bull GASGAS Factory Racing team excited about his potential.

After a few challenging first races in MX2, Mattia Guadagnini will race an MC 450F at the upcoming stops of the 2022 FIM Motocross World Championship. '101' has already tested his new steed and there is plenty of excitement in the air as the GASGAS squad head to the Grand Prix of Sardegna.

Competing at just twenty years of age, Guadagnini will be able to absorb a lot of knowledge on the MC 450F and put that to good use in the future. It is such an exciting time for him to learn and grow in the very competitive MXGP division. Everyone at GASGAS Factory Racing is pleased to see him hit another milestone in his career.

Mattia Guadagnini: "I had great expectations for this season. I prepared very well with the team, but things in the races have gone wrong too many times. I have made mistakes and also had some bad luck! We are not yet halfway through the season, but realistically it is very difficult to achieve the goals that I had set for myself. I thought that it would be more logical to look forward and prepare for next season, especially as I have so many rounds to adapt to the MC 450F. I talked about it with De Carli and the team, and perhaps this change will be positive for everyone? I thank the team and management for this opportunity."

Claudio De Carli: "Between mistakes and unlucky episodes, Mattia is going through a difficult period. We all know his talent – he can return to doing very well and is still in the top ten in MX2. Mattia always works with great commitment and is a mature, determined, professional and very fast rider. We talked about it, for his interest, and among the various possibilities he himself decided to move to the MXGP category. This transition was planned for next season, but we are all convinced that it is a good solution to make the move immediately. In MXGP he will not have to worry about the results. There are thirteen rounds to race, in which he can become familiar with the 450 and thus prepare himself as best as possible for 2023."

Red Bull GASGAS Factory Racing will continue to be represented by Simon Langenfelder in the MX2 division. Langenfelder sits third in the championship standings and has one Grand Prix win to his name so far.

Copyright Photo: GASGAS Factory Racing

The FIM Motocross World Championship heads to Riola Sardo for the eighth round of the series and the second ever edition of the MXGP of Sardegna!

Check out the timetable and entry lists for the event below:

TIMETABLE

MXGP ENTRY LIST

MX2 ENTRY LIST

WMX ENTRY LIST

EMX250 ENTRY LIST

For the second year in row the FIM Motocross World Championship will head to Sardinia, as Riola Sardo is set to host the MXGP of Sardegna next weekend on the 14^th and 15^th of May.

Alongside the regular MXGP and MX2 races, the weekend will also see rounds of the Women’s Motocross World Championship as well as the EMX250 category.

This weekend an opening press conference was organised where the mayor of Riola Sardo Lorenzo Pinna, Sardinia Region Minister of Tourism Gianni Chessa and Fulvio Maiorca, organizer of the MXGP of Sardegna were present to emphasise the great work carried out by Motoclub Le dune and the Ministry of Tourism of Sardegna Region to host a stop of the FIM Motocross World Championship. Thanks to their great cooperation in making the event possible once again.

Infront Moto Racing is looking forward to returning to Riola Sardo to see the second edition of the MXGP in the beautiful island of Sardinia.

MONACO (Principality of Monaco) 9 May 2022 – MXGP is excited to continue the Fox Holeshot competition for the 2022 season of the FIM Motocross World Championship, together with MXGP partner Fox.

How does the competition work?

Every Grand Prix race, during both MXGP and MX2 races, the rider who crosses the white line painted on the ground at the exit of the first corner secures the Fox Holeshot and receives one point. At the end of the season, the two riders, one per category, with the most Fox Holeshot points will win the mega prize!

At the MXGP of Italy, the Fox Holeshot’s were won by four different riders across the MXGP and MX2 categories. In MXGP, the first Fox Holeshot went to Gebben Van Venrooy Yamaha Racing’s Calvin Vlaanderen while in race two the start was won by Kawasaki Racing Team MXGP’s Ben Watson!

In MX2, the Red Bull GasGas Factory Racing’s Mattia Guadagnini secured his first Fox Holeshot of 2022, while in the second race, it was Hitachi KTM Fuelled by Milwaukee’s Kay Karssemakers who led the way after the first corner.

As it stands, Red Bull GasGas Factory Racing's Jorge Prado leads the competition in MXGP with six Fox Holeshots so far, while in MX2 the leader is Red Bull KTM Factory Racing's Tom Vialle with five. 

MXGP Fox Holeshot Classifications

MX2 Fox Holeshot Classifications

Watch the Fox Holeshot Films from the MXGP of Italy below.